In teaching this unit, I will implement various strategies and modifications that will take place inside the same class with the clear objective of addressing all the various needs of either the strongest or the weakest students. I also intend to scaffold the various strategies I will teach them continuously. This is an essential component of the unit because I want my students to reach the point of real independence in approaching and analyzing any text.
Specifically, I will start the unit with a pre-reading activity for each text, either written or visual. The previewing activity, also known as warm-up, is an essential strategy to motivate my students. The choice of effective strategies is the key point of the entire unit. Research says the level of motivation students bring to a task impacts whether and how they will use comprehension strategies. Reading for a real reason and creating an environment rich in high-quality texts are equally important. Sometimes an oral preview of stories, which are then turned into discussions and predictions, increases the story comprehension, and a creative variation of the preview by having the students compose a narrative based on key words from the upcoming story triggers a deeper comprehension.
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Consequently, I will use two different activities: a Quick Write activity at the very beginning of the unit and the Tea Party and/or Probable Passage before the reading of each document. The Tea Party strategy encourages an active participation with the text. This pre-reading strategy allows students to predict what they think will happen in the text while inferring, comparing and contrasting, see casual relationships, and use their prior knowledge. It is extremely effective with unmotivated and/or struggling readers. The Probable Passage forces students to predict, think, infer, reach conclusions, and see casual relationships. It also offers the opportunity to comprehend the vocabulary.
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The first text I will introduce,
An Agent, a Green Card, and a Demand for Sex
written by Nina Bernstein and published in the New York times on March 21, 2008, I will start by writing the title of the article on the board and will add: What do you think I mean by ‘agent,’ ‘green card,’ and ‘demand for sex’? They will be given five minutes to respond in their journal. When the time is over, I will write a second prompt: What do you think are the problems the immigrants have to face in this country? Why? Cite specific examples and discuss them. I expect they will illustrate various problems and I also know that these questions will involve all my students because it is something they see every day in our society. I will add another prompt at the end of this second eight minutes’ writing: What can the American people do to alleviate these difficulties? What can you, students and future citizens, do to solve the problem(s)? How? What are our suggestions? Why?
This activity will be modified for the struggling students who tend to reject writing because they need to build that prior-knowledge they do not have. This group will start with a different activity, the Tea Party, in which each student will receive an index card with a phrase from the article itself. I will select no more than ten phrases which will be written more than once so that I will have a card for each student. Specifically, “he got his way,” “reason to worry,” “to be fearful,” “passport,” “money, not sex,” “if I do it, it’s like very hard for me,” “trust him,” “let me go because…,” “Nobody is going to help you for nothing,” “blunt demand”. My students will be instructed to read the card and move around in the room, go to other students and read what they have to as many students as possible. The activity will last for about seven or eight minutes and then they will return to their desk and I will write the following prompt on the board: what do you think the story is about? Why? They will be given eight minutes for writing.
At the end of each previewing activity, the students will share and discuss their writing before I give them the text to read. Sometimes, I might not have the time to read the document in class and consequently it will be assigned as homework. They will also have to underline three unknown words of which they will have to determine the meaning from the context or by consulting a dictionary. I do not give them any vocabulary list because they need to become active learners.
The first close-reading of the article will follow. For this activity, I want them to learn the importance of annotating the text. In fact, I will ask them to read and highlight all those sentence(s), word(s), phrase(s) which grab their attention, and write brief notes in the form of question, comment and, or connection. Since this is not the first time they have annotated the text, I will only model how to determine the author’s main idea, the tone and the purpose of the document. This strategy will allow me to point out how corruption is eroding the system itself and exposes millions of people who are noncitizens to avoid the law because this law can use them unscrupulously. I will also point out how the author conveys her ironic criticism by starting the article with, “No problems so far, the immigration agent told …” (Bernstein), or by brutally reporting the statement, “I want sex” (Bernstein). Why did the immigration agent express his request paternalistically? Why did the author want to report this news? How do you feel after reading it? How would you react if you were in a similar situation? What would you propose to prevent such behavior? This will certainly lead to a class discussion in which my students will reflect on how the ‘rule of the people for the people’ can fail so dramatically.
At this point, I will prompt my students with the following statement: Aristotle stated that a citizen is not a citizen because he lives in a certain place. What do you think? What makes a person living in country merely a citizen of that country? Why do we need to be called citizen? Does the lack of citizenship expose the person to any dangers? If so, which and form what or whom? Why? This written assignment will help them explore and understand their position as citizen but it will also lead them to understand the risks that are involved. The assignment will require them to write their personal reflections and to support them with appropriate examples and text references. The students who are in the Honors class or in the Advanced Placement course will also have to analyze the text more in depth. In the Lesson Plans section I will write the questions that can be used for all the various written documents of this unit.
After this first document and the various class discussions about how some people can use the ‘system/rule’ to exploit others, I am sure to have my students’ interest, so I can introduce Aristotle and some of his most famous statements on political systems. I do not plan to present the entire excerpt of Book Three from
Politics
because it would be too difficult and “boring” for my students. On the contrary, I intend to simply write on the board: Aristotle stated that a democracy is the government of the many. He also affirms that “as the number increases it becomes difficult to attain perfection”.
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Why? Before requiring them to express their ideas, I will briefly explain that Aristotle lived in Greece, Athens, in 384-322 BC. His works shaped the Latin world and had also a powerful influence on the English-speaking one. His writings were translated and constituted the subject matter of higher education until the 17
th
century. Many famous English writers like Spenser, Donne, Dryden, and even Dr. Johnson were influenced by him in their writings. I will not evaluate his political thoughts because I want the students to freely express their opinions as representatives of the 21
st
century. This should give me the chance to discuss whether Aristotle’s statements are still valid or not, whether they can illuminate us and helps us avoid imperfections. If we cannot do that, what alternatives are we left with? I will also modify the same question for the struggling students and specifically I will write: Do you think that is it easy or difficult to reach a decision when this decision has to be taken by many people all together? Why? These initial reflections will help me lead my students to reflect about the real meaning of democracy and its possible risks. In the following class discussion, I will lead them to reflect on what the individual can do to correct or avoid the problems and/or risks that are present in any form of democracy. I also want to challenge them further by asking whether they feel active members of our community. If they do not, I want them to analyze why they feel themselves excluded, and what they need to do to change the situation. Of course, my objective is to help them find their own voice. At this point, I will close the analysis of this second document by reminding them the essential questions: After analyzing Aristotle’s thought what do you think is the concept of democracy? Does it mean freedom? Does it mean equality? Does it mean equal opportunities?
The next document I will present to my students is an excerpt from
Julius Caesar
, Act III, Scene II.
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This scene presents one of those imperfections Aristotle mentioned in his work. In fact, my students will have a glimpse of how the government and the ones in charge of it interact with the citizens. Since we will not read the entire historical tragedy but just one specific scene, I will briefly tell them who Julius Caesar was and what he did. I will also introduce a few details about Rome and its history. I will also add that the excerpt deals with the events which occurred after Caesar’s assassination by Brutus, who was his best friend, Cassius and other fellows. My students need also to know that the citizens who were present at the Forum and were taking all the relevant decisions were less than five. I will point out that this was certainly connected to the theater requirements. It is anyway emblematic of a specific model where you can see “something” in action. I will purposely use the word “something” because I want them to learn how to interpret, analyze and draw the appropriate conclusions.
I will follow the same strategies I did with the first document. In fact, soon after the brief introduction, I will write the following prompt on the board: Do you think the citizens are really those who see a problem, denounce it and together decide how to solve it? If not, who does it? Who decides? Why? For the struggling students, I need to stimulate their motivation with a more appropriate activity. In fact, instead of briefly introducing the play and the Quick Write activity, I will write few words from scene two - “public reason,” satisfied,” “slaves,” “free,” “ambition,” “honorable,” “tyrant,” “censure,” bondman,” “capitol”.
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They will have to distribute these words in one of the following categories: character(s), setting, causes, outcome(s), and unknown words. When they finish categorizing them, I will ask them to write a Gist Statement (concise statement) of what they think those words might refer to. Both previewing activities will be followed by a class discussion in which I will first listen to their reactions and then lead them to look for reason and/or solutions to the imperfections of democracy. The reading of the scene will be assigned as homework.
When we start the analysis of the scene, I want them to first annotate the text and start determining what phrases were used by both Brutus and Antony to change the citizens’ evaluation about Caesar’s government. For the Honors students and those who are in the AP class, I also want them to look at the two political speeches and to determine how repetitions and descriptive devices are used to convince the citizens that the speaker was believable and honest. I also want them to analyze the words Brutus used to introduce the reason why Caesar had to be killed as well as the words used by Antony to explain his theory. All students will also use a reading sheet in which I ask them to determine the main idea of the entire scene and to write which lines express that main idea specifically. The same reading sheet will require them to identify the purpose, the audience, the tone, and other special features they find relevant or interesting. They will always have to write the lines or phrases related to the mentioned rhetorical elements. All students will also be required to write one essay (350 words for the college classes and 500 words for all the others) in which they discuss the author’s thesis, purpose and tone. The second essay - same length - will analyze those specific featured they determined in the reading sheet. During the class discussion, which will follow, we will take notes on a poster we will keep for the entire unit.
The next documents are some paintings by George Caleb Bingham. The use of visual documents in any thematic unit is essential because our students are more and more exposed to various forms of visual communication. They need to understand and learn interpreting visuals as if there were written texts. Visual documents are critical for all those students who struggle with the interpretation of the text. These students can learn effective strategies that are applicable to the traditional texts.
For this specific unit, I will show them
The County Canvass
also known as
Stump Speaking,
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The Verdict of the People
,
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and
The County Election
.
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Since I do not want them to lose interest, I will not give them any information about the author, George Caleb Bingham in advance. I will hand out the copies of the first painting,
The County Canvas
, and I will ask my students to observe it for a few minutes in silence. At this point, the college students will start their analysis by responding to the following question: What do you see in this picture? They will be given five minutes and then without starting any sharing of their first writing, I will add another question: What do you not see but you expect to see? Why? Another five minutes’ writing will follow. At this point, I want them to start sharing but I do not want them to discuss or respond to any of the various interpretations. This is very important because I want my students to internalize the various perspectives and help them change or better understand the visual. In fact, soon after this first sharing, I will write the following question: What details do you notice specifically? After listening to your classmates’ interpretations, do you see anything differently? Why? I will give them another five minutes’ writing and then I will add on the board: What does this painting remind you of? Why? What do you feel looking at this image? Why?
During the Sharing time that will follow our writing activity, I will let them express their interpretations without any interruptions. My intervention will occur only if I see they deviate from the essential question that is to determine what democracy is. If this should happen, I will prompt them with some questions: What is democracy? What details would show you this concept of democracy? Why did the author not include those details you deem important? How would you represent democracy? How do you expect to see democracy today? or Do we represent democracy today? At this point, I will hand out the images of
The 2008 Campaign: Pulling the Lever
from
The New York Times
, Wednesday, April 23, 2008, and will require my students to compare and contrast them to the painting by G. C. Bingham. This activity can be either written in their journals or oral during our sharing time.
The same process will be followed with
The Verdict of the People
and
The County Election
. I foresee some modifications for the special education students. In fact, they will be expected to answer: What is visible in this image? Write down a few notes on what the visual appears to be. During our sharing time they will surely acquire further information they can use to deepen their understanding of the paintings. The students in the AP class and in the Honors will follow a modified strategy. In fact, I expect them to learn determining and analyzing the focal point, the figure-ground contrast, proximity, and similarity. I will start by teaching them that usually there is one central figure which attracts your eye first, and that is called focal point. This is important because it guides you to understand the image. I will guide them with the following questions: What detail catches your attention first? And Why would the artist focus on this detail? What are your theories?
The AP students need to further deepen their analysis of the visual documents because at the exam they might be required to respond questions about the figure-ground contrast, proximity and similarity, color, lines and details. Consequently, I will start with the figure-ground contrast which emphasizes the difference between what is in the front and what is in the back (ground). The figure is often the focal point - What other details do you see other than the focal point? Why would the artist include those details? What are your theories? I also foresee the following modification: Write down any elements or details that seem important or what are the key elements or features of this image? and How do they contribute to what you see?
Grouping according to proximity and similarity is also an important element in visuals. Consequently, I will ask: Which elements and/or details are in the same space? (proximity), Look for elements that are positioned close together. What connections do you see between/among them? The eventual modifications will be: Look for details /elements that are close to each other. Why would the artist include those details? What are your theories? The similarity is another important element in any visual and I will prompt them as follows: Which elements and/or details are close to each other or have the same shape, or size? (similarity), What is/are the effect(s) of those elements on your response to the image? The modification will be: Look for details/elements that are similar for size, shape or color; Why would the artist include those details? What are your theories?
Color in visuals has a specific connotation and conveys meaning and feelings. In fact, it can focus our attention, create contrast, appeal to emotions and help communicate the message. I will ask my students: How do the color(s) or degree of shading appeal to emotions? The eventual modification will be: Did the artist use colors that you did not expect? What are your theories? What emotions does this specific color appeal to? Would you use the same colors the artist did? Why? Would you use different colors? Why?
Lines also provide a sense of movement. A line can convey mood (in the AP English Language and Composition class, and those in the Honors class already know the meaning of mood). Lines can create a sense of calm and equilibrium, uncertainty, or movement and stress. Soft lines may imply softness, flow, or change: Look at the lines in this image. Describe these lines (horizontal, vertical, soft, thick, or wavy). Why did the artist include those lines? What are your theories? I foresee modifications: Would you use the same lines? Why? Would you use different lines? Why? What do you think the artist wanted to tell us?
Most times artists do not include all the details the viewer expects to see in the visual document. This is because the artist wants the viewer to predict and imagine. Leaving information out creates interest, generates tension contributing to the understanding of the artist’s message, and promotes the viewer’s participation. This is called closure. In order to understand this specific detail, my students will be helped with the following questions: What is not visible? Why? What are your theories? What question you would ask the artist? Why? The possible modification will be: What does this image suggest you? What does this image tell you about democracy?
During our sharing time, I will simply read aloud what I wrote and then my students will be encouraged to do the same (since we are in the third marking period, they do it automatically, but if you never did it before, the students need encouragement). I will also tell them that we will not spend any time discussing their writings, we will simply share them. At this point, I will ask them to briefly research who G.C. Bingham was and to share the information in class. Soon after, I will write the following questions on the board: What is the purpose of this image? What detail or details mentioned by your peers caused you to see this image differently? How do your experience and knowledge affect the reading of the image? Think about the image in term of context: historical, personal, technical, or cultural. Use the title as a theory and parts of the visual as clues to detect and specify the interrelationships in the graphic. I will modify the previous questions as follows: Highlight the words of the title of the visual if available. Are there any connections between the title and the visual? What are your final thoughts about the visual as a whole.
Before presenting them with another document, I expect my students to write a brief essay in which they compare and contrast the visual with the text we previously studied. I will modify the activity for the weakest students. In fact, I will require them to draw a T-chart and list all the essential elements, feelings, reactions, and/or interpretations of the visual and of the text first in order to determine any possible similarities and differences.
The next document we will analyze is
Waiting for Lefty
by Clifford Odets.
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Since my students need to have some background information, I will require them to research the authors and determine the historical background connected to the time when Clifford Odets lived, wrote and-or produced this play. I also want them to research what the social and political conditions in the country were. I deem this activity essential because my students need to understand that sometimes democracy may mean corruption too. I want my students to be able to detect any of these distortions because they have to become “real” independent thinkers. Of course, this will be assigned as homework. Specifically, they will have to write the summary of the documents they find in their journal. In class, we will share and discuss the results of this research and I will also ask them to take notes in the journal. They already know how to take note because this is the first strategy I teach them at the beginning of the school year. These notes, together with their summaries of the historical, economic and social conditions of Odets’ times, will be the basis of their understanding of the entire play. Now, the college students will read the entire play in class with me whereas the Honors and AP students will do the first reading at home.
Before reading the document, the college students will be exposed to a pre-reading activity. Specifically, I will write the title -
Waiting for Lefty
- on the board followed by these questions: Who is waiting for Lefty? Who do you think Lefty is? Who is waiting for him? Why? After the five minutes writing, I will add on the board: “…Lefty took a run-out powder” and “I honest to God don’t know, but he didn’t take no run-out powder.” followed by these questions: What do they mean? Why? What is his position or responsibility? When do you think a person can decide to disappear? Why? After responding those questions, I will add: “They need food and clothes” followed by: Who is the author referring to with “they”?
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What might be the causes of this situation? What is the connection between Lefty and the lack of food and clothes? What will happen next? I know that all my students will be actively involved and interested in this situation. The use of the vernacular should not be a problem; differently I think it will involve them much more because they tend to read and appreciate whatever connects to their own lifestyles.
Soon after these initial activities, we will follow the same strategies. This persistent scaffolding is extremely important because my students need to internalize these strategies in order to become independent thinkers and learners but also to help them focus on the understanding of the text rather than on the execution of the strategy. Consequently, after the first reading, they will annotate the text. I expect them to highlight all those phrases, words or paragraphs that grab their attention. They also have to briefly annotate the reason in the margin. The Honors and the AP students will also have to determine the words and phrases which determine the tone and the purpose of this play. They will have to annotate any other special features they find interesting. Briefly, they will write why that phrase or word is relevant in the play. When the annotation is concluded, I will further lead them to understand the play in view of the essential question of the unit. In fact, I will write the following question on the board: Why is Fatt against the strike? Does Fatt have any concerns for the other workers? What do you think is his personal reward? The students will be given seven to eight minutes to respond and then they will be required to determine some quotes proving what the workers’ conditions were. They will have to write the quote and add their own commentary. They will also have to determine the quote proving which side Fatt takes. At this point, the students will have to write their commentaries but they will also have to analyze the language used by Fatt in order to achieve his objectives.
The next activity will be focused on the analysis of how the accurate use of certain expressions can lead the ‘people’ to determinate actions and reactions. To help them understand and analyze this specific situation, I will form three groups: the first group will determine the quotes where Fatt tries to show the workers the inutility of their strike. When they have found these quotes, they will underline the words or phrases that Fatt used to convince the workers and write their commentaries. The second group will approach the relation between Miller, the lab assistant and Fayette, an industrialist, and the third group will analyze the episode between Dr. Barnes and Dr. Benjamin. A the end of this closer analysis, my students will have to use their notes and commentaries to write an analytical essay (350 words for the college students and 500 words for the Honors and AP ones). They will have to further analyze this text by reflecting and responding to the following prompt: Aristotle stated that democracy is the rule of the people by the people. Does Odets play -
Waiting for Lefty
- reflect this concept? Or does it not? Why? The college students will be asked to respond in an essay format, whereas all the others will discuss this question and will write their reflections on the poster that we keep on the board.
The next document is an excerpt from
The Grapes of Wrath
by John Steinbeck.
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The AP and Honors students will be required to read the entire novel as homework. I might give them a couple of days in class, but essentially I expect their first reactions during our Sharing Time. In our class discussion, I expect them to discuss the setting, issues, and main characters. I will ask them to determine the time period and the purpose for writing this novel. I also want them to take notes during our discussion because they will have to verify their first interpretations by researching who John Steinbeck is, when and where he lived, what the economic/social conditions of the country were. All the other College students will start with a pre-reading activity. In fact, I will begin by writing on the board the following prompt: What does Grapes of Wrath mean? What is the meaning of wrath? How can we have ‘grapes of wrath’? The first obstacle I expect will be the meaning of the word ‘wrath’. Consequently, I will ask one student to use a dictionary to determine it clearly and I will also ask to write the definition on the board. I will further modify this step for the weakest students. In fact, I expect to spend few more minutes so that they can use this new word in new sentences or can even try to visualize and draw it in their journals. Soon after this practice, I will let them respond the prompt for five minutes and then I will add another question: What or who might cause a serious outburst? Why? They will be given another five minutes before sharing their writings. When this activity is concluded, I will assign them to research the author, John Steinbeck, his time period together with the social and economic conditions in the nation. They will have to briefly summarize the main points or simply take notes in their journals - modification for the struggling students. This research will be followed by a class discussion in which they will share their findings and will be prompted to think about how they would expect people to react to the economic difficulties during the Great Depression. I also want the College students to research the synopsis of the novel so they understand the excerpt we will study closely. A further modification for some of the weakest students is to watch the movie soon after the pre-reading activities.
The excerpt I want them to analyze is chapter 22 in which Steinbeck presents the situation of the camp where many migrants end up in their desperate search for a job.
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This chapter is extremely interesting because it shows how common people can govern each other. Moreover, it could be interpreted as the perfect example of the Aristotelian concept, if it were not for some subtle conditions that my students will have to infer. The Honors and AP students will start rereading this chapter in class and will also annotate it. I expect them to determine who the main characters in this excerpt are and what they precisely say or do. I also want them to underline or highlight all those quotes/words/phrases that can arise any possible wonder whys. They need to determine the purpose of this camp and the tone of the entire chapter. While they are underlining these elements, they have to briefly annotate their first reactions/interpretations/ inferences on the sticky notes.
When the annotations are concluded and shared in class, we will read this excerpt together aloud. This time I want them to form groups of three or four and spend ten minutes selecting three quotes, writing the commentary for each of them, and any possible connections to today’s world. When they have concluded this activity, each group member will have to exchange the journal with the other partners, read the selected quotes and subsequent commentaries, and respond - commentary and connection. Sharing time will follow with class discussion and notes taking. After this class activity, I will ask them to write their first interpretation of the excerpt, taking into account both the personal quotes and interpretations as well as the other students’ ones. The College students will have to produce a 350-word essay whereas the Honors and AP students will have to write a 500-word essay. Of course, I might implement a further modification for the struggling students. This group of students will anyway start with the selection of one quote but this task will be immediately followed by Sharing Time because I want to further help them select those quotes which are meaningful for the understanding of the excerpt. An easy method to teach the students how to find the important quotes is to lead them to the answer by simply asking: Do you read the response to your wonder why in the text? Of course, when they realize their wonder why question is meaningless because they already know the answer, I will explain them that they need to select quotes whose meaning is not immediately clear because it is not written in the text. In order to respond their wonder why, they need to use their common sense and some clues from the text. At this point, they will be given another ten minutes to select another quote followed by another Sharing Time. When this task is clear, they can start responding and exchanging their journals.
After this initial close-reading, I expect the Honors and AP students to write a second essay in which they discuss the tone, the audience, purpose, and any other features (figurative language) they deem interesting. They will have to support the essay with various text references. In analyzing the purpose of this excerpt, I expect them to consider the essential question of the unit - What is a democracy? In responding to this question, I expect my students to support their reflections and/or statements with references to the texts we previously studied. All the other College students will simply write their conclusions in response to the essential question with support from both this excerpt and any other previous texts. This task can be assigned either as homework or class activity during one ninety-minute period. Sharing Time and note taking on the poster we keep in the room will follow.
The next two documents I will introduce are
America
and
Let America Be America Again
by Langston Hughes.
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This time I will start the study of these two texts by reading both of them aloud in class. The poems are not difficult to understand, so we can immediately pass to the task to annotate the text. In our Sharing Time we will express our reactions and/or reflections about
America
first. I want my students to express their initial reflections and I will also expect a real discussion. If this should not happen, I will write on the board the following questions: Why does Langston Hughes start this poem with “Little dark baby, Little Jew baby, Little outcast”? Why did he repeat the word “little” three times? Why did he want to address “babies”? How can a baby be an “outcast”? I also want them to compare Hughes’s audience to the audience the other authors were addressing - Why did the other authors not talk to babies? What do you think Hughes meant with “baby”? Another line I will eventually point out is “the building and struggle of this new one” - world. How was America constituted? What could the word “building” mean or refer to? What did this American democracy have to offer to its people? Why does Hughes continuously repeat the word “dream”? What does he mean when the poet identifies himself as
America
? Why? Soon after the conclusion of our initial analysis of
America
, we will start to interpret
Let America Be America Again
. I will follow the same strategy and the eventual questions will be written on the board: Who is Hughes’s audience in this poem? Why does he now address adults instead of babies? How does he depict democracy? Why does he say that “Liberty is crowned with no false wreath”? If America is a democracy why does he use the verb ‘crown’ that is more appropriate for a monarchy? What does he want to communicate? What is the result of the dream he had? Why does the poet identify himself as a “farmer, bondsman to the soil… worker sold to the machine”? Who are these people? What do they represent? After this initial discussion, I will expect my students to write their first response in which they will analyze, discuss and compare the two poems. This first writing will be followed by a second one where the AP and Honors students will have to analyze and discuss the purpose, the tone and the figurative language of the two poems. The lower level students will be required to continue their analysis by responding to the following prompt: Langston Hughes writes, “We, the people, must redeem the land, the mines, the plants, the rivers.” What did he mean? Why? What is the tone of these lines? Why? Does it remind you of anyone else who asked the people to redeem America? Another class discussion will follow and this time I also want them to take notes to have other students’ interpretations and perspectives. Before closing our sharing time, I will ask the students: What does Langston Hughes think about democracy? What does he point out? Does it differ from the concept Aristotle handed out to us? Why? The conclusive thoughts will be recorded on the poster we keep on the board throughout the entire unit.
The last document we will analyze is the movie,
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
by Frank Capra. I have chosen this document to conclude my unit because I want my students to understand how democracy works and how to counteract the perils it involves. Throughout the unit they have constantly seen that the rule of the people according to the Aristotelian principle is open to very dangerous attacks by the people themselves. In fact, the same people who are called to rule the people are the most vulnerable to corruption and betrayal. Nonetheless, as pointed out in the first article -
An Agent, A Green Card, and a Demand for Sex
- the vulnerability of the “political person” reflects its consequences on the simple, innocuous citizen who would never expect to be manipulated by those he/she trusted. I also want them to reflect on the “real” meaning of “truth”, “liberty” and “compromise” which are the essential concepts developed in Capra’s movie. Specifically, I want my students to analyze how honesty and truthfulness are used in the movie to destroy the reputation of Mr. Smith, and how the same two concepts are used in everyday’ life - i.e. in school, office or any other environments - to alienate or denigrate an individual. I want them to be aware of their environment and I want them to be able to detect any possible attempt of corruption or manipulation.
I will start this final part of the unit by watching the entire movie. All students irrespective of their differentiated learning levels can do this activity. I will not introduce the same movie with any prompt. Soon after watching this movie, I will ask them to write down any lingering question they have in reference to the movie. In the following Sharing Time, I will write on the board all their questions so my students can focus on some of the key concepts developed by F. Capra. Soon after, I will write on the board “truth”, “liberty”, “corruption”, “greed”, and “compromise” and I will require them to list the various forms of liberty, compromise, corruption, greed, and truth they know. This activity will prompt them to the analysis of today’s society and in the discussion that will follow we will compare and contrast this reality to the one represented in the movie. Before writing the next prompt, I will show them the scenes of Mr. Smith in Congress at the very beginning of his parliamentary experience and during his filibuster. Soon after, I will write, “Look at the body language the Senators display in the various scenes. What does it tell you? Why? What specific element would have alerted Mr. Smith about the real situation behind his election? Why?” My students will be given ten to fifteen minutes to respond and elaborate. At this point, my students will have a list of behaviors and attitudes they can reflect on and teach them to infer and understand the reality behind certain situations. This discussion will also bring out more awareness of the concepts of ‘honesty’ and “truth’. Before concluding the analysis of the visual document, I want them to compare and contrast Senator Paine’s honor and reputation with those of Shakespeare’s Brutus, and Mr. Smith’s experience to that of the 22-year-old Colombian woman -
An Agent, a Green Card, and a Demand for Sex
- to determine whether anything has changed in the course of the centuries. This writing activity will certainly teach my students to become independent thinkers.
The unit will be concluded with an essay - five to six pages in length - in which they have to determine their concept of democracy. I also want them to support their theory with three of the sources we analyzed. The struggling students will follow the same prompt but they can prepare a Power Point presentation.
